Associated Press stories, Page 1686
Oscar slate holds ‘firsts’ for Asian actors, filmmakers
It may be hard to believe that there are still many “firsts” left to check off after 93 years of the Academy Awards, and yet this year there were a handful for Asian actors and filmmakers. Steven Yeun (“Minari”) became the first Asian American actor to be nominated for best...
Research on shaken baby syndrome helps free 15-year inmate
A California man imprisoned for 15 years in the death of his month-old son is free after prosecutors and a judge agreed that the scientific research underlying what was once called “shaken baby syndrome” has changed significantly in recent years. Clifton Jones, 45, was released this month from Soledad State...
Screws tighten for home buyers in March, prices surge 17.2%
Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes fell for the second consecutive month in March because there are so few on the market, and the fierce competition for those that do exist is pushing prices to new highs. Existing home sales fell 3.7% last month from February to a seasonally-adjusted rate...
Countering Biden, GOP pitches $568B for infrastructureVideo
WASHINGTON — A group of Senate Republicans on Thursday unveiled a public works proposal with a much smaller price tag and a narrower definition of infrastructure than what President Joe Biden has proposed, highlighting the stark differences between the two sides that will be difficult to bridge in the coming...
Authorities believe remains are those of missing Amish teen Linda StoltzfoosVideo
LANCASTER — Authorities strongly believe that remains found a day earlier in a grave along railroad tracks in southern Pennsylvania are those of a young Amish woman who disappeared last summer, a county prosecutor said Thursday. Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams told a news conference that a coroner has...
EPL looks to deploy moves to stop future Super League threat
LONDON — Having rapidly mobilized to thwart rebel clubs from joining a breakaway European competition, the Premier League is taking steps to prevent the so-called “Big Six” from attempting something similar in the future. England’s biggest clubs have often used threats of joining a Super League as a power play...
FCS draft prospects generally opted not to play this spring
There’s a common thread linking most of the Football Championship Subdivision players who expect to hear their name called in the NFL draft. They didn’t participate in their schools’ pandemic-delayed spring season. “Ultimately, it just comes down to athletes taking care of their bodies,” North Dakota State offensive tackle Dillon...
Consumer Reports tricks Tesla to drive with no one at wheel
Consumer Reports said Thursday it was able to easily trick a Tesla into driving in the car’s Autopilot mode with no one at the wheel. Its test came just days after a Tesla crashed in Texas, killing the two men in the car. Authorities say neither of the men were...
Russia orders troop pullback but keeps weapons near Ukraine
MOSCOW — Russia’s defense minister on Thursday ordered troops back to their permanent bases following massive drills amid tensions with Ukraine, but said they should leave their weapons behind in western Russia for another exercise later this year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the Russian pullback along their border. After...
Prince fans pay respects at Paisley Park 5 years after deathVideo
CHANHASSEN, Minn. — Paisley Park, where Prince lived and worked, welcomed back select fans Wednesday to mark the fifth anniversary of his death from inside his creative sanctuary. Some wore custom Prince clothes and shoes and left flowers and other mementos as tributes to the late superstar. The sprawling studio’s...
Covid-19 hospitalizations tumble among U.S. senior citizens
WASHINGTON — Covid-19 hospitalizations among older Americans have plunged 80% since the start of the year, dramatic proof the vaccination campaign is working. Now the trick is to get more of the nation’s younger people to roll up their sleeves. The drop-off in severe cases among people 65 and older...
High court moves away from leniency for minors who murder
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court made it easier Thursday to sentence minors convicted of murder to life in prison without the possibility of parole, a ruling that reflects a change in course driven by a more conservative group of justices. In a dissent, a liberal justice accused her colleagues of...
D.C. statehood approved by House as Senate fight looms
WASHINGTON — A decades-long movement to reshape the American political map took a further step Thursday as the House of Representatives approved a bill to make the nation’s capital the 51st state. Voting along party lines with minority Republicans in opposition, the House approved the bill 216-208. That’s likely the...
China, Russia join U.S. vowing emission cuts at climate summit
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden convened leaders of the world’s most powerful countries on Thursday to try to spur global efforts against climate change, drawing commitments from Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin to cooperate on cutting emissions despite their own sharp rivalries with the United States....
Supreme Court cuts back FTC power to seek ill-gotten gains
WASHINGTON — A unanimous Supreme Court on Thursday cut back the Federal Trade Commission’s authority to recover ill-gotten gains, overturning a nearly $1.3 billion award against a professional race car driver who was convicted of cheating consumers through his payday loan businesses. The high court’s ruling takes away what the...
Turkey probes cryptocurrency exchange for possible $2B fraud
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish prosecutors launched an investigation into a cryptocurrency exchange Thursday over allegations it may have defrauded some 390,000 investors of an estimated $2 billion. The office of Istanbul’s chief prosecutor said it was probing the Thodex cryptocurrency exchange following complaints from users who could not access their...
Prototype of first U.S. dollar coins going up for auction
A piece of copper that was struck by the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia in 1794 and was a prototype for the fledgling nation’s money will go up for auction Friday. Businessman and Texas Rangers co-chairman Bob Simpson owns the item, which is known as the “No Stars Flowing Hair Dollar.”...
Tokyo Olympics torch relay has first positive covid-19 case
TOKYO — Tokyo Olympics organizers said Thursday that a policeman tested positive for covid-19 a day after his assignment last week at the Olympic torch relay. It is the first positive test connected to the relay since it began March 25 from northeastern Fukushima prefecture. Organizers say the policeman, who...
Protesters gain access to Manchester United training ground
MANCHESTER, England — A group of Manchester United fans unhappy with the club’s involvement in the abandoned Super League plan gained access to its training ground on Thursday and spoke to manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and some members of staff. The protesters carried banners with messages including “Glazers out,” in...
Woman injured when turtle crashes through windshield on Florida highway
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — It’s not unusual for rocks and other debris to crash through a windshield and injure a driver or passenger — but a turtle? A 71-year-old woman riding with her daughter on Florida’s Interstate 95 suffered a gashed forehead Wednesday when a turtle smashed through the windshield...
Stocks end lower after report on Biden’s tax proposal
A report that President Biden will propose a hefty tax increase on the gains wealthy individuals reap from investments triggered a stock market sell-off Thursday afternoon that left indexes broadly lower. Investors who earn $1 million or more would have to pay a 39.6% tax rate on any capital gains,...
Indonesia looking for submarine that may be too deep to help
Indonesian navy ships searched Thursday for a submarine that likely sank too deep to retrieve, making survival chances for the 53 people on board slim. Authorities said oxygen in the submarine would run out by early Saturday. The diesel-powered KRI Nanggala 402 was participating in a training exercise Wednesday when...
U.S. jobless claims fall to 547,000, another pandemic low
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment aid fell last week to 547,000, a new low since the pandemic struck and a further encouraging sign that layoffs are slowing on the strength of an improving job market. The Labor Department said Thursday that applications declined 39,000 from a...
Russia holds major drills in Crimea amid Ukraine tensions
MOSCOW — The Russian military on Thursday conducted massive drills in Crimea involving dozens of navy ships, hundreds of warplanes and thousands of troops in a show of force amid tensions with Ukraine. The maneuvers were described as the largest since Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine in...
British panel acknowledges racism in honoring war dead
LONDON — The British government and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission have apologized after an investigation found that at least 161,000 mostly Africans and Indians who died fighting for the British Empire during World War I weren’t properly honored due to “pervasive racism.” The investigation found that at least 116,000...
